Press



Jan. 24, 1928.

n .Imlltlllllvllll L M. H. BALLARD PRESS Filed Aug- 25. 1924 w. 5x2-mam..

/M/ENTUR- film Patented `lan. 24, 1928.

UNITED s'rA'rEs PATENT eFH-'casi MILTON 1r. BALLARD, or

BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS,ASSIGNOR TO 'U".N'I"..IE1)4 SHOE MACHINERY COBPQBATIUN, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, COBCPORATION 0I' :bmw JERSEY.

PRESS.

.ippucamn mea mgm 25, 1924, serial No.

921,503, granted May 11, 1909 on an applicasidera ly i Subsequently tion of Arthur Bates. Such a clicking machine .comprises a cutting block of an area ,designed to support skins such as are used for shoel upper leather and fabrics of considerable widths and a presser member having a ressure applying face of an area conless than that of the cutting block and mounted for movement in lateral directions above the cutting block. In operating with such a machine a piece of shoe upper leather or other sheet material is spread upon the cutting block while the presser member is positioned laterally at one side of the block so that there is no obstruction above the cutting block to restrict the amount of light reaching the work or to interfere with pro er arrangement and inspection of the wor or with the positioning of a freely movable die in any desired location upon the work. After the die has been laced in selected position the resser mem er is swung into position over t e die and starting mechanism is operated to cause a pressure applying movement of the presser member by which the die is forced through the work.

the presser member is returned to one side of 4the block to facilitate removal of the die and of the cut blank and the positioning of the same or of another die upon the wor As resser members for clicking machines have eretofore been made, each has been a single casting with a cylindrical hole near one end for the reception of the clicking machine post which supports and supplies power to the presser member. This hole in the presser member must fit the post accurately so that the presser member may be rigidly secured to the post to prevent relative movement of the post and the presser member during pressure applying opera- ?34,033, and in Switzerland August 5, 1924.

tions. In assembling such a presser member with the rest of the machine the presser member is placed with said holein alinement wlth the upper and lower bearings for the post. The post is then lowered'through the upper bearing in the frame of the machine, through the opening in the presser member, into the 'lower bearing. If the opening in the presser member is slightly under' size great difficulty is encountered in forcing the post through the hole in the presser member. In any case it takes the combined efforts of at least three nien to place` even aproperly fitting presser member in proper relation to the other parts .of the clicking machine, the difficulty being aggravated 1f for any reason .the hole in the presser member is even slightly under size. Under these circumstances 1t may be impossible to assemble the post and a given presser member and it is sometimes even more difficult to remove such a. presser member. It is accordingly an object of the present invention to'provide a clicking machine 0rganization which will greatly .facilitate the assembling of the presser member and the post and the removall of the presser member from the machine. To this end, an important feature of the invention com rises the provision of capa the main portion or arm of thei presser member, and clamping means, .such as U- a member, illustrate as a co-operating with but separable from shaped bolts'to secure the two parts to-l gether in proper relationl to the post of the machine.l With tliijs construction the presser member may be' secured to or removed from the post without removing the post from its bearings inthe frame of the machine. This permits the ready assembling of the Ipresser member and the post of the machine and so facilitates that operation that it may be performed without diiculty by one man instead of, as heretofore, requiring the efforts of three or more.

Moreover, the construction and arrangement above described require no such careful and costly accuracy in reaming the surfaces of the post engaging opening in the inside edge crtions of the cap and of the presser mem er, if slightly under size, will grip the post and serve tosecure the -parts even more rigidly than would be the case if the openings or grooves were full or over size. i v

A further.` advantage of the illustrative construction lies in theV fact that the clamping of the cap and arm of th'elresser mem-- ber to the post results in asti ening of the post itself, the cap and arm acting in .a manner analogous to that of sphnts. This also reduces vibration and itsv attendant disadvantages.

`It is a further object of applicants invention to stifi'en and strengthen the presser members of clicking machines.' Accordingly, the presser member of the illustrated maclfine is chambered and is provided with a reinforcing member vof high tensile strength within the chamber and arranged to resist stresses tending -to bend or break w the presser member. The pressure applied by clicking machines is at times as much as eighteen or twenty tons, and since the presser member in the illustrative type of .machine is supported at one end only it will be seen that the presser member is sub-A V i illustrated presser member is provided with jected to very hard usage.

In the 'illustrated construction the U- shaped bolts which are usedto secure Vthe cap and the arm of the presser member to the post of the machine themselves serve also as reinforcements for the presser member. As illustrated two of these reinforcing members are used, the lower one of` which tends to resist strains developed particularl'y when the outer end of the presser member strikes a die upon the cutting block. In. order to augment the reinforcing effect, this reinforcing member is inclined relatively to the surface of the presser member so that it is effective as a reinforcement from` the very start of any deformation of the presser member. On the other hand, when a clicking machine is operated with a die upon the portibn of the cuttinglblock near the post the outer end of the presser member tends to continue its downward movementl after the presser member strikes the die. This tends to rupture the presser member, from its upper surface downwardly, closely adjacent to the post. The upper attaching member serves `as a reinforcement against this kind of breakage. Not only are these reinforcing members useful in preventing breakage of the presser member, but they also add greatly to its stiffness, thus further tending to reduce vibration of the machine and facilitating a nice adjustmentI of the stroke of the presser member.

Asr exemplified in a preferred construction herein illustrated, the linvention also comprises a clicking machine organization the presser member of which has an arm composed of metal of relatively low density as compared with the density of iron and provided with internal reinforcing means of a different metal of high tensile strength.

The illustrated presser member has an aluvsaid application conspicuously successful.

At the saine time, the presser member of the clicking machine herein set forth is even more ri id than a cast iron presser member of like 'mensions Another feature of the invention relates to the provision of mechanism for lessening the shock of the blow when the presser member, upon being swung in either direction, comes into contact with the frame of the machine, and for returning the presser member toward the operator. To this end, the

spring-pressed plungers mounted site sides of the member.

With the aboveobjects and features 11i view, the invention will now be described with reference .to the accom anying drawings and pointed out in the clgaims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation and partly in section of a clickin machine illustratingvone embodiment of t e invention;

1g. 2 is a plan view partly in section and showing the presser member and the cutting block as viewed from above;

Fi 3 is a sectional view of the presser mem er taken along the line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fi 4 is another section of the presser mem er along the line 4 4 of Fig. 2; and

, Fig. 5 is still another section of the presser 'inemberpalong line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

chine. Mounted in bearings 16 and 18 provided in the machinefranie 14 is a post 2O rotatable in the bearings so that a presser member 22 which is secured to the ost may be swung laterally over the cutting lock 10.

Power means such as are shown in United States Letters Patent No. 1,431,920, granted October 17, 1922, upon an application filed filed August 6, 1924 in ing plunger 81.

ber through a connecting rod 83 which has screw-threaded ends receivable in interiorly screw-threaded sockets in the plungers 8l. As shown, the middle part of the connecting rod 83 passes through an opening much restiicted in size when compared with the sockets that receive the plungers 81, the purpose being to provide a shoulder at each side of the restigted part of the opening so that springs 84 may have each a backing wall or seat while the other end of each spring engages an adjacent surface on its correspond- Hence, inwaid movement of either plunger 81 is resisted by a spring 8st seated in the plunger socket. The described construction provides plungers and springs which may be easily assembled or disassembled as occasion may require. Preferably the s rings 84 aie of considerable size and strengtli so that when the presser member is swung away from over the front of the cutting block with such force as to cause either plunger to engagewith the frame of the machine there will be a rebound of the presser member due to the action of the spring behind the plunger. By reason of the provision of such a buiier mechanism as that shown the operator may throw 'the presser member to one side without attention as to the force employed since no damage will be done to either frame or presser member. Moreover, he is certain to have the presser member returned to him part Way through the operation of one of the springpressed plungers, provided that more than a certain minimum force is'employed in swinging the presser member to one side following a pressure applying operation.

The illustrated presser member is suiiicicntly rigid to give practically the same results all ovei the surface of the cutting block l0 wherever the die may be selectively positioned by the operator. In other Words, the presser member. possesses suihcient rigidit to ensure that the die will be forced throughI the Work Whether it be located at the rear Vof the cutting block and thus near to the post or whether it be out near the free end of the presser member. Moreover, the inclusion of the steel reinforcing members in the construction of the presser member makes no noticeable addition to the effort required in swinging the light presser member of said application Serial No. 730,461 laterally above the cutting block. This is true not only because of the small Weight of members 52 and 54 but also because of the fact that all of the upper reinforcing member 54 is disposed so as to have its parts closely adjacent to the post 20, and with respect to the lower reinforcing member 52, certainly a good third of its total weight is disposed so as to be closely adjacent to the post. Moreover, the Weight of the securing members 52 and 54 is small as compared with i tions and laterally post, said post being reciprocabIe the weight of the presser member. Consaquently, the reinforced presser member is found to swing with such little effort that the operators efficiency is increased markedly when comparison is made with the old type clicking machine provided with the heavy cast iron presser member and the advantages of the light swinging presser member disclosed in the above mentioned applica tion Serial N o. 730,461 are retained.

Having described the invention, what I Claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:-

l. A clicking machine having :1 cutting block, a post, a presser member comprising an arm extending over the cutting block, a cap, and means securing the cap and the arm of the presser member to the post, said presser member being movable toward and from the block in pressure applying operaover the block.

2. A clickin machine havinga cutting block, a rotata ly mounted post, a presser member comprising an arm extending over the cutting block and movable with the post in lateral directions over the block, a cap engaging the post and the arm of the resser member, and means for clamping t e cap and the arm of the presser member to the post.

3. A clicking machine having a cutting block, a post, a presser member comprising an arm extending over the block, a cap engaging the post and the arm of the presser member, and means securing the cap and the arm of the presser member rigidly to the to carry the presser member toward and from the block in pressure applying operations and rotatable to permit movement of the presser member over the cutting block.

4. A clicking machine having a cutting block, a post, a presser member comprising an arm extending over the cutting block, a cap, and means for attaching the cap to the arm of the presser member thereby securing the presser member to the post.

5. A presser member for clicking machines comprising an arm, a cap separableA from the arm, the arm and cap being formed for the receptionbetween them of a sup porting means for the presser member, and means adapted to secure the cap rigidly to the arm.

6. A presser member comprising an arm, a cap separable from the arm, and a niember adapted to engage the cap and the arm tosecure the presser member rigidly to the post of a clicking machine.

7. A presser member comprising an arm, a cap separable from the arm, and a U- shaped clamping member adapted to secure the cap rigidl to the arm.

8. In a clic ing machine,

a presser member comprising a chambered arm, a cap, and

'mounted for reciprocating movement toward and from the block and for movement laterally over the block and said clamping means comprising a reinforcing member of relatively great tensile strength to resist stresses tendingto bend or break the presser member during pressurel applying operations.

10. A presser member for clicking machines comprising a body portion composed of metal of relatively low density as compared with the density of iron, a cap, and a reinforcing member of high tensile strength constructed and arranged to secure the cap to the body portion of the presser member and to resist stresses tending to bend or break the presser member.

11. A clicking machine having a cutting I blockfa reciprocating presser member extending over the block and comprising .an arm supported at `one end and having an internal reinforcing member adapted to resist stresses developed upon reciprocation of the presser member and tending to bend or break the presser member.

12. A presser member for clicking machines comprising a body portion having an internal reinforcing member adapted to resist stresses tending to bend or break the presser member.

13. A presser member for clicking machines comprising a body portion composed of metal of relatively low density as compared with the density ofiron, and having an internal reinforcing member of high tensile strength adapted to resist stresses tending to bend or break the Apresser member.

' 14. A clicking machine having a cutting block, and a reciprocating presser member extending over the block, said presser member comprising an-arm supported at one end and having an internal reinforcing member angularly disposed with relation to the pressure applying face of the presser member to resist stresses developed upon reciprocation of the presser member and tending to bend or break the presser member.

15. A clicking machine having a cutting block, and a reciprocating presser member extending .over the block, said presser niember comprising an arm supported at one end and having an internal reinforcing member in its lower part. and a second reinforcing member in its upper part,` said reinforcing .members being adapted to resist stresses de veloped upon reciprocation of the presser member and tending to bend or break it.

16. A clicking machine having a cutting. block', a post, a presser member comprising an arm extending over the cutting block, and a U-shaped clamping member adapted to secure the arm of the presser member` t0 the post.

17. A clicking machine having a cutting block, a post, a presser member comprising .an arm extending over the cutting block,

and clamping means comprising a reinforcing member arranged to secure the arm of the presser member to the post.

18. A clicking machine having'a cutting.

block, a post, a reciprocating presser member extending over the block, said presser member comprisingA a bodyv portion composed of metal of relatively low density as compared with the density of iron, and a reinforcing member of high tensile strength constructed and arranged to clamp the presser member to the post and to resist stresses tending to bend or break the presser member.

19. A clicking machine havinga cutting block, a post, a reciprocating presser arm extending over the block and means comprising a U-shaped member composed of ma vterial of high tensile strength and arranged to constitute a reinforcing member for the presser arm. A

20. In a clicking machine, a frame, a cutting block, a presser member comprising an arm constructed and arranged for movement laterally of the cutting block, and a pair of rigidly connected, spring-pressed plungers, mounted on opposite sides of the arm, constructed and arranged to lessen the shock of the blow when the pressermember comes in contact with the frame upon` lateral movement in either direction away from the operator, and to return said member toward the operator. p l

21. -A clicking machine having a presser arm, a-bufer mechanism comprising plungers mounted on opposite sides of said arm, means for connecting said plungers, and a spring for each plunger.

22. A clicking machine comprising a frame, a cutting block, a presser member movable laterally over the cutting block and spring-pressed plungers mounted on opposite sides of the presser member constructed and arranged to effect a rebound of the presser member when said member is moved in such.`manner as to cause either plunger forcibly to engage with the frame of the machine.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

MILTON ii. BALLARD. 

